Progressing...

I had an experience a couple of weeks ago that I've been pondering ever since and find really quite charming. Jess and I did the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, a 5k race/walk to raise money for breast cancer awareness and research. My father's mother and my mother's sister both died from breast cancer, and it's a cause I truly believe in. We had the opportunity to train and raise some money, and then race day found us bopping around a 5K path with around 14,000 of our closest friends. It was a great experience for both of us.

During the race, there were people of all ages from all walks of life from the community cheering us on. My favorite moment of the race was about half way through. We had walked past countless groups of cheer leaders yelling things like "you're doing great" and "you guys are awesome" or "keep up the good work!" But at one bend, there were three early twenty somethings--two girls and a guy--that were just standing there. As we passed, the young man said, "You're progressing--I like it."

We were taken aback for a minute because it was such an odd thing to say, and then we just started chuckling. Of all the things that were said to encourage us, that one was probably the most real, and it's definitely the one that stands out in my mind. His comment carried us through the rest of the race and into the coming week.

As I've considered his comment the last couple of weeks, I've decided that it contains deep wisdom for me that he probably didn't intend. I've always been fascinated by Paul's race imagery in the new testament, and I very much try to live my life in a way that will some day allow me to say, as Paul, that I have run a good race, fought a good fight, and kept the faith. But running a good race has to be a sustained effort of years filled with purpose and focus, not spurts of effort amidst a life of coasting. It's easy to do our best in those moments in life when something grand is spurring us on and inspiring us; but those moments don't often happen, and most of life is quieter and slips past us with less fanfare.

In considering the comments of our cheer leaders on the race path, I think the Savior is actually more like the young man than the other cheerers. His message for us from day to day really is "you're progressing--I like it." Then he adds KEEP IT UP AND DON'T QUIT, AND EVEN IF YOU STUMBLE, TRY AGAIN. He doesn't want us to use ourselves up all at once; he wants us to live a life of sustained dedication that quietly adds up to becoming more like him--no pressure, just becoming something better one step at a time.

So my message to you for the day comes from that great young sage in Plano, Texas, who doesn't probably even realize how wise he is: "you're progressing...I like it!" Isn't life great?!!?